Category: Grief

A Hedge of Protection – Thoughts from the Life of Job – 2025 Day 59 (Job 3)

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Read through the Bible in 2 years: Job 3; Psalm 27

When I was a new Christian learning how to pray, I noticed that people would often pray for “a hedge of protection” around someone. I had never heard that phrase before, but I started using it myself, asking God to put a hedge of protection around my children, my husband, my house.

Yesterday we looked at Job 1:9-11, “Then Satan answered the LORD and said, “Does Job fear God for no reason? Have you not put a hedge around him and his house and all that he has, on every side? You have blessed the work of his hands, and his possessions have increased in the land. But stretch out your hand and touch all that he has, and he will curse you to your face.””

But what about the previous verse, Job 1:8?

“And the Lord said to Satan,
“Have you considered my servant Job…”

Job 1:8a

I simply love this verse. Job was a blameless, upright man who feared God and turned away from evil, and yet the Lord offered him up to the evil one saying, “Have you considered my servant Job?”

The Lord removed that hedge of protection, allowing – in fact, inviting – the enemy’s attacks on His righteous servant, Job, and Satan stripped everything away from him – his possessions, his children, his health, even his wife’s encouragement, yet “in all this Job did not sin with his lips.” (Job 2:10) Lord, may the same be true of me. But my heart broke as I dove into Job 3, reading about Job cursing the day he was born.

Though I’ve enjoyed an easy life in comparison to Job’s, I’ve had my share of trials. Sometimes I have wished that heaven would hurry up and get here because this life is just too hard. And yet, I can say with full assurance that all of God’s ways have been right and good. He has grown my faith in Him during those times of pain. He has indeed sheltered me under His wings. He has taught me the wisdom of Psalm 27:4.

“One thing have I asked of the LORD,
that will I seek after: that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life,
to gaze upon the beauty of the LORD
and to inquire in his temple.”

Psalm 27:4 ESV

So, today, whether you are feeling the glorious hedge of God’s protection (Job 1:10) or the painful hedge of thorny trials (Job 3:23), I pray that you will seek and serve the Lord no matter what.

Will you pray with me?

Heavenly Father,

Thank You for the shield of faith and the sword of the Spirit which is the Word of God. Your grace is sufficient for me. Your strength is made perfect when I am weak. Whether I can feel Your presence or You feel a million miles away, help me to trust that You are always with me. Whether I’m on the top of the mountain of victory or in the bottom of the darkest valley, help me to see Your rod and staff guiding me. Let me not trust in any man-made rescue plan, but place my trust fully in You and You alone, for You are perfectly trustworthy.

The blood of Jesus is my faithful hedge of protection.  It is in His Almighty name that I pray, Amen.

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“Blessed Assurance”
Sovereign Grace Worship

The Testing of your Faith – Lessons from Job 1-2 – 2025 Day 58

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Read through the Bible in 2 years: Job 1-2; Psalm 26

Then Satan answered the LORD and said, “Does Job fear God for no reason? Have you not put a hedge around him and his house and all that he has, on every side? You have blessed the work of his hands, and his possessions have increased in the land. But stretch out your hand and touch all that he has, and he will curse you to your face.”

And the LORD said to Satan, “Behold, all that he has is in your hand. Only against him do not stretch out your hand.”

-Job 1:9-12 ESV

Like I wrote recently, "We learn of God’s grace as we are humbled. Surely these afflictions are for our good. It is good to recognize that nothing on earth will ever be enough. Treasures on earth – whether monetary or relational – will never satisfy. Our lives are better because of the thorns that the Lord has in His mercy given us. Our faith grows as it is stretched."

No one is a better example of this than Job!

In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.

1 Peter 1:6-7 ESV

Friends, it’s a blessing to have your faith tested. When your faith is tested, it GROWS, and it shows you and everyone around you that it’s REAL!

Let’s pray,

Heavenly Father,

Thank you for the gifts that You have given us – our health, our children, our home, our jobs, all of our possessions. They are gifts.

Draw our hearts to You, Lord. Forgive us for turning to these gifts instead of turning to You.

May we say with Job, “The Lord gives and the Lord takes away, blessed by the name of the Lord.” None of us want to go through the sorrow of losing our children, our possessions, or our own health. But, Father, none of those things can ever truly satisfy.

You are our God, our refuge, our hope, our joy, our strength. Our faith is in You alone. Blessed be the Name of the Lord.

In the Name of Your Son, Jesus Christ, we pray, Amen.

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“Here Is Love, Vast as the Ocean (Everlasting Praise)”
Live from Sing! – The Gettys, Sandra McCracken

Trusting God when People Hurt you – 2025 Day 55 (Genesis 45-46)

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Read through the Bible in 2 years: Psalm 23, Genesis 45-46

So Joseph said to his brothers, “Come near to me, please.” And they came near.

And he said, “I am your brother, Joseph, whom you sold into Egypt. And now do not be distressed or angry with yourselves because you sold me here, for God sent me before you to preserve life. For the famine has been in the land these two years, and there are yet five years in which there will be neither plowing nor harvest. And God sent me before you to preserve for you a remnant on earth, and to keep alive for you many survivors. So it was not you who sent me here, but God. He has made me a father to Pharaoh, and lord of all his house and ruler over all the land of Egypt.”

Genesis 45:4-8 ESV

I have a quick, simple question for y’all. Have you ever been sold into slavery by your brothers? No? Me neither.

Have you ever been hurt by anyone in your life? Yes? Me, too.

When someone hurts you, it can be hard (impossible?) to forgive them. Sometimes it feels like you simply can’t “let them off the hook” by forgiving them. We take on the role of punisher, paying them back for what they’ve done to us.

But let’s think carefully about Joseph’s words here. What if we saw God’s hand at work even in our pain? How would our desire to punish someone who hurt us change if we truly believed that God was working even this pain to bring good? Wouldn’t that make forgiveness a whole lot easier?

The truth is that God is always at work, accomplishing the best ends through the best means for the most people. Sometimes people get hurt during that … And sometimes those people include YOU and ME and OUR loved ones.

Will you pray with me?

Heavenly Father,

I trust You. I trust Your heart. I trust Your mercy and kindness and grace and power. You have proven Yourself to be good and faithful – in Your Word and in my life. But, Father, sometimes things look really bad to me. In fact, sometimes things really are bad. It’s wrong to sell your brother into slavery. That is wrong. Yet, Lord, you worked through that unthinkable tragedy to bring great good for a great number of people with fruit still being born even today.

I pray that I would trust You with all my heart, soul, and mind. Help me to remember Your steadfast faithfulness to Joseph, and me, now and forever.

In the name of Jesus I pray, Amen

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Loving People When They Hurt You: Thoughts from the Life of Judah and his Dad – 2025 Day 54 (Genesis 42-44)

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Read through the Bible in 2 years: Psalm 22, Genesis 42-44

Genesis 42 kicks off with the famine having spread to the land of Canaan, thereby forcing Jacob to send his sons to Egypt to buy grain. Jacob sends ten of his remaining sons, but refuses to send Joseph’s younger brother, Benjamin, the only other son of Rachel, “for he feared that harm might happen to him.” (Genesis 42:4) Jacob is still playing favorites, like I wrote about here.

As though that’s not bad enough, even after Simeon (Jacob’s second son from his unloved wife, Leah) is left behind in Egypt, Jacob continues to insist that Benjamin cannot go to Egypt, saying, “My son shall not go down with you [Reuben, Jacob’s firstborn son], for his brother [Joseph] is dead, and he is the only one left.” (Genesis 42:38) In fact, Jacob still has eight other sons in addition to Reuben left at home, namely Levi, Judah, Dan, Naphtali, Gad, Asher, Issachar, and Zebulun.

How would you feel if you heard your father say such a thing about one of your brothers?

Wouldn’t you want to scream and cry and stomp your feet, “Hey, Dad, what about me? Don’t you love me? Aren’t I your son? What about me and my children? What if we starve here from this famine?”

When the famine becomes even more severe and all the Egyptian grain has been consumed, Jacob is finally willing to send his sons again to Egypt to buy food. (Keep in mind, Simeon had been left in Egypt as a captive all this time.)

Judah, Jacob’s fourth son who was also born to Leah, solemnly pledges to his father, “From my hand you shall require him [Benjamin]. If I do not bring him back to you and set him before you, then let me bear the blame forever.” (Genesis 43:9 ESV)

To which Jacob finally relents, “May God Almighty grant you mercy before the man, and may he send back your other brother and Benjamin. As for me, if I am bereaved of my children, I am bereaved.” (Genesis 43:14)

Now, put yourself in the shoes of Judah, or one of Leah’s other sons or worse yet one of the sons of Rachel’s servant Bilhah or Leah’s servant Zilpah. Imagine hearing your father refer to Simeon, your big brother as “your other brother” while Rachel’s son is referred to by name. Benjamin, Jacob’s last son. Benjamin, the only remaining son of Rachel, Jacob’s dearly loved wife who died during his birth. Benjamin, the “son of my right hand.”

Whether spoken intentionally or not, Jacob’s words communicated to his children that Benjamin is more valuable than they are. Read Judah’s own words to Joseph about his dad at the end of Genesis 44.

“As soon as he sees that the boy is not with us, he will die …
Now therefore, please let your servant remain instead of the boy as a servant to my lord, and let the boy go back with his brothers. For how can I go back to my father if the boy is not with me?
I fear to see the evil that would find my father.”

Genesis 44:31a, 33-34 ESV

In spite of the pain that his father has caused him, Judah still loves his dad. He may not be expecting a prodigal son’s welcome home — no father running to him with arms open wide. Rather, he is expecting to arrive home to a father who is looking behind him to see if his baby brother is there. And yet … Judah is still worried about the deep pain that his brother’s loss will cause his father.

Are you having a hard time loving someone who has hurt you again and again? Are you struggling to forgive someone who has repeatedly broken your heart?

Let’s pray.

Heavenly Father,

How I long to see you face to face, to sit at your feet and have every tear wiped away from my eyes! How I ache for the pain and sin and sorrow of this world to be over!

But, Father, in the meantime, help me to love as Your Son loved. Remind me how much You have forgiven me. Show me my sin.

Help me to forgive even those who forget me and reject me and spit in my face. I want to forgive others as You have forgiven me.

Lord, I can’t do this on my own. I need Your strength. Help me to see the log in my own eye, to accept responsibility for where my own sin has contributed to the pain that I find myself in.

I want to overcome evil with good, for You are good and I am Yours.

In the Good and Gracious name of Jesus I pray, Amen.

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Hymn of Heaven by Phil Wickham

The Unloved Wife – 2025 Day 47 (Genesis 29-30)

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Read through the Bible in 2 Years: Psalm 15, Genesis 29-30

“When the LORD saw that Leah was hated, he opened her womb, but Rachel was barren. And Leah conceived and bore a son, and she called his name Reuben, for she said, ‘Because the LORD has looked upon my affliction; for now my husband will love me.’

She conceived again and bore a son, and said, ‘Because the LORD has heard that I am hated, he has given me this son also.’ And she called his name Simeon.

Again she conceived and bore a son, and said, ‘Now this time my husband will be attached to me, because I have borne him three sons.’ Therefore his name was called Levi.

And she conceived again and bore a son, and said, ‘This time I will praise the LORD.’ Therefore she called his name Judah.

Then she ceased bearing.”

– Genesis 29:31-35

Leah viewed her first three sons as tools to get her husband to love her.

  • Son #1: Now my husband will love me.
  • Son #2: The Lord has heard that I am hated.
  • Son #3: Now my husband will be attached to me.

Yet, it’s Leah’s fourth son, Judah, the son whose name means praise, the son whose birth brought Leah to say, “THIS TIME I WILL PRAISE THE LORD,” whom God chose to father the line of Jesus Christ, God’s only Begotten Son and the Savior of the World,

Friends, think about this: it was Leah, the unloved wife, whom God chose to bear Judah.

I remember my own time of marital pains  and infertility. Reading this story about Leah is such an encouragement to me.

God has purpose both in our fertility and in our barrenness. May we bring Him glory in both!

Are you feeling unloved today? I’ve been there. But so has Jesus. He knows how it feels to be rejected by those who were supposed to love Him. And Jesus, the Great I Am, loves you. He is worth a thousand times more than the most perfect husband or a thousand imperfect sons.

Let me pray over you.

Heavenly Father,

You are close to the broken-hearted. You are the God who remains faithful when man is faithless. You love the unloved and the unloveable, the poor, the lonely, the rejected.

You are the good shepherd who pursues His lost sheep.

I pray that we would praise You when life is easy, and we would praise You when life is hard. No matter what, You are worthy of our praise!

We offer our hearts, minds, wombs, and lives to You. Father, fill them as You will in Your perfect timing and for Your perfect purposes. Help us to trust You with our hearts and our hurts.

In the name of Jesus our Savior and King we pray, Amen.

Click here for more information on reading through the Bible in Two Years.

Sorrow turned to Joy – 2025 Day 16 (John 16)

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Read through the Bible in 2 years: Proverbs 16, John 16

“Truly, truly, I say to you, you will weep and lament, but the world will rejoice. You will be sorrowful, but your sorrow will turn into joy. When a woman is giving birth, she has sorrow because her hour has come, but when she has delivered the baby, she no longer remembers the anguish, for joy that a human being has been born into the world. So also you have sorrow now, but I will see you again, and your hearts will rejoice, and no one will take your joy from you.”

– John 16:20-22 ESV

When I look at this picture, which was taken just moments after my youngest son was born, so many memories of that day flood back into my mind. After laboring into the wee hours of the night, I’d gotten my first epidural out of a crazy need for some rest, only to find myself overwhelmed by an intense feeling of panic when I couldn’t take a deep breath or feel my legs.

Yet, when that baby boy was delivered, all 8 pounds 15 ounces of him, I was even more overwhelmed by a feeling of ecstasy and joy, unexplainable to anyone who has never delivered a baby.

All the pain and exhaustion
was worth it, the very instant that little boy drew his first breath
and let out his first cry.

Just as friends try to prepare a new mom for the pain of labor and delivery, Jesus was trying to prepare His disciples for the great sorrow they would experience at His upcoming death and departure. An important part of that preparation that many experienced moms forget to share, is the immense JOY that you will experience after the pain is over.

Friends, listen to me, someday it will be worth it! Soon and very soon we are going to see the king! And there will be no more crying there. In this world we will indeed have tribulation, but we can take heart because Jesus has overcome the world.

We don’t need to try to take shortcuts to avoid the pain, hiding our lights under bushels so no one can see them, drowning our sorrows in Facebook and food. Instead, we can rejoice today because we know with certainty that these labor pains are only temporary and that they will all be worth it when we see our Savior face to face.

Will you please join me in prayer?

Heavenly Father,

You are our hope in life and death. Help us to fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfector of our faith. Help us to fix our minds on things that are above. Help us to number our hours and days, knowing that these times are in fact short and these trials are indeed light, in comparison to the eternal weight of glory that is to come.

We pray for those who are in the depths of sorrow today, who are at the peak of the incredible pain of labor, who can’t seem to make out that light at the end of this valley of despair. Father, please, be their comfort and help them to see Your everlasting arms carrying them and Your loving hand guiding them through this dark valley. Use us to encourage them. Help us to grieve with those who grieve just as deeply as we rejoice with those who rejoice.

We pray for those who are without hope today because they are without Christ. We pray that You will open their eyes and soften their hearts to the everlasting gospel of Jesus Christ who bore their punishment by His death on the cross. May today be their day of salvation, that many will rejoice with the angels over one lost sinner who repents!

In the holy and good name of Jesus we pray. Amen

Click here for more information on reading through the Bible in Two Years.

Mark 7: He Maketh No Mistake.

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Read through the Bible in 2 Years: Mark 7.

Do you know how often I mess up in a day?

Let’s just look at just yesterday, a regular day in my life. To start off the day, I turned off my alarm and stayed in bed much later than I should’ve, then found myself hurrying through my time in the Word. At lunch I burned a small bowl of diced carrots in the microwave. Carrots? Yes, carrots. Who does that? Then, in the afternoon, I started cleaning out my office so my daughter could use it as her bedroom, but I got distracted and ended up spending two hours going through a tub of memorabilia that I found in the closet. In the evening, I was grumpy and short-tempered with my husband for no good reason at all. And I’m sure this list doesn’t cover a tenth of all the decidedly un-well things I thought, said, or did yesterday.

But God. God does ALL things well. All things. Well. He does all things WELL.

And they were astonished beyond measure, saying, “He has done all things well. He even makes the deaf hear and the mute speak.”

Mark 7:37 ESV

And because He does all things WELL, I have nothing to fear as I trust in Him.

He Maketh No Mistake

My Father’s way may twist and turn
My heart may throb and ache,
But in my soul I’m glad to know,
He maketh no mistake.

My cherished plans may go astray,
My hopes may fade away,
But still I’ll trust my Lord to lead,
For He doth know the way.

Tho’ night be dark and it may seem
That day will never break,
I’ll pin my faith, my all, in Him,
He maketh no mistake.

There’s so much now I cannot see,
My eyesight’s far too dim,
But come what may,
I’ll simply trust and leave it all to Him.

For by and by the mist will lift,
And plain it all He’ll make,
Through all the way, tho’ dark to me,
He made not one mistake.

– A.M. Overton, 1932 (More info here)

Heavenly Father, all Your ways are perfect and right and just and wise. I have nothing to fear for You are always with me, guiding me and helping me. Day after day, You lead me and take care of me for I am Your little lamb and You are my good shepherd. You do all things well. In the Name of Jesus Christ my Savior and Lord I pray. Amen.

All Things Well – Amen Quartet

Mark 3: Giving Thanks in ALL Circumstances.

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Read through the Bible in 2 Years: Mark 3

Jesus called the twelve men whom He desired and they came to Him. One of those twelve men was Judas Iscariot, who betrayed Him.

As hard as it is for me to understand why God puts hard people and hard situations in my life, I want to trust Him, that this is His will for me and that His will is always right and good. Jesus ‘s own family thought He was “out of His mind.” (Mark 3:21) Why should I expect any less?

Give thanks in all circumstances;
for this is the will of God
in Christ Jesus for you.

1 Thessalonians 5:18 ESV

Heavenly Father, I know that no plan of yours can be thwarted. I know that You know all things, past, present, and future. You know what is in the hearts and minds of all men. You are perfectly wise and work perfectly to accomplish Your purposes. Help me, Father, to trust You enough to give thanks in every circumstance, trusting that You are on Your throne and that You are good. In the Name of Jesus Christ, my Savior and my Lord, I pray. Amen.

The Lord is My Salvation – Shane and Shane

The Tribe of Benjamin. 1 Samuel meets Judges.

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Read through the Bible in 2 Years: 1 Samuel 9-10.

Reading through the Bible book by book has helped me make connections that I’d missed before. The book of Judges ended with the terrible story about the Levite whose concubine was raped and murdered in the land of Benjamin. (Read Judges 19-21). Next, all the tribes of Israel went up against the Benjaminites. Thousands were killed on both sides and the tribe of Benjamin was defeated. In the end, though, Israel decided they didn’t want the tribe of Benjamin to be wiped out, so they devised a plan to repopulate the land of Benjamin by providing the few remaining men with virgin young women from Jabesh-Gilead plus those captured from Shiloh.

Now reading 1 Samuel, Israel demanded a king and God chose a man of Benjamin. Benjamin. And the Lord confirmed this in front of all the people, choosing the tribe of Benjamin, the clan of the Matrites, and Saul, the son of Kish, by lots.

Such a powerful example of God’s ways being higher than ours.

Lord, I often don’t understand what You’re doing, why You lead the way You do. Help me to trust You, to believe that You are at work even in the craziness of daily life in this crazy world. Help me to trust You and walk by faith day by day. In the Name of Jesus Christ I pray. Amen.

Shane and Shane – Psalm 90

Grief

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Read through the Bible in 2 Years: 2 Corinthians 7

October 15 is Pregnancy and Infant Loss Day, a day set apart each year to remember those babies that have gone from our arms too soon.

In God’s providence, unaware of this date (or had it just not been established yet?) I had planned my own baby’s memorial service for October 15, 1998, because it was the one month anniversary of his passing. In today’s reading in 2 Corinthians 7, I was struck by verse 10.

For godly grief produces a repentance that leads to salvation without regret, whereas worldly grief produces death.

2 Corinthians 7:10 ESV

The greatest times of growth in my life have always come on the heels of the greatest griefs. Sometimes that grief has taken the form of physical and emotional pain – losing a baby, marriage and parenting struggles, financial hardships. Sometimes that grief has taken the form of spiritual pain, the result of grieving over my own past or present sin.

And yet, it is quite possible for that very same grief to turn us away from God rather than toward Him. The loss of a baby, the infidelity of a spouse, a wayward child, the recognition of our own sin, all of these things can drive us to doubt God’s presence or goodness.

This, I believe, is one result of what Paul here calls, “worldly grief,” grief turned inward rather than heavenward. We think God must not care for us if He has allowed such pain to enter our life, forgetting the profound wisdom of a mother who chastens her child for his good.

Do you find yourself today in the midst of an unending sea of grief? Cry out to God. Ask Him to rescue you by the mercies of His Son, Jesus, who came to Earth to seek and save the lost, who surrendered His own life that you might have the gift of eternal life.

Heavenly Father, I lift up the person reading this post. I pray that You will draw them into Your loving arms. I pray that You will chasten them like a wayward lamb, that they will come running through the narrow gate of Christ and find safety in the fold of forgiveness. You are so good. I am so thankful for Your righteous judgement and Your boundless mercy. In the Name of Jesus Christ, my Good Shepherd and King, I pray. Amen.